(The following appeared on the Weekly Standard website on March 8, 2011.)

President Obama’s controversial plan for a high-speed rail system took a hit Tuesday as the top California member of Congress, House majority whip Kevin McCarthy, voiced strong opposition to building a new rail line between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Though the line would run through his hometown of Bakersfield, McCarthy insisted it would be a bad investment, especially now with government debt soaring.

In California, the high-speed rail system would cost at least $60 billion just to build, then require a subsidy to operate.